The Science of Conversation: How To Say What You Mean, Be Heard, and Stop People-Pleasing | Alison Wood Brooks

The Science of Conversation: How To Say What You Mean, Be Heard, and Stop People-Pleasing | Alison Wood Brooks

You talk all day. Here’s how to do it better, according to a professor from Harvard Business School.

Alison Wood Brooks comes from the Harvard Business School, where she teaches a course called “TALK: How to Talk Gooder in Business and Life,” which she has now turned into a book, called TALK: The Science of Conversation and the Art of Being Ourselves.

In this episode we talk about:

  • The evolution of conversation
  • Why conversation is a skill — not just a natural talent
  • How to develop conversational skills, including common conversational pitfalls to avoid
  • Granular, tactical pieces of advice on how to have a conversation
  • The science behind conversation that may surprise you
  • Listening tips
  • Conversational repair strategies
  • How kindness can go pear shaped
  • How to handle difficult moments in conversation
  • The difference between focusing on other people and people pleasing
  • How to integrate these incredible learnings into your life
  • How soft skills are becoming increasingly more valuable with the rise of AI

Join Dan’s online community here

Follow Dan on social: Instagram, TikTok

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel

Additional Resources:

On Sunday, September 21st from 1-5pm ET, join Dan and Leslie Booker at the New York Insight Meditation Center in NYC as they lead a workshop titled, "Heavily Meditated – The Dharma of Depression + Anxiety." This event is both in-person and online. Sign up here!

Get ready for another Meditation Party at Omega Institute! This in-person workshop brings together Dan with his friends and meditation teachers, Sebene Selassie, Jeff Warren, and for the first time, Ofosu Jones-Quartey. The event runs October 24th-26th. Sign up and learn more at eomega.org/workshops/meditation-party-2025.



To advertise on the show, contact sales@advertisecast.com or visit https://advertising.libsyn.com/10HappierwithDanHarris

Sponsors:

Function Health: Learn more and join using our link. Visit www.functionhealth.com/HAPPIER to own your health.

Factor Meals: Eat smart at FactorMeals.com/TENPERCENT50OFF and use code TENPERCENT50OFF to get 50% off your first box, plus free breakfast for 1 year.

AT&T: Staying connected matters. That's why AT&T has connectivity you can depend on, or they will proactively make it right. Visit att.com/guarantee for details.

Episoder(906)

Elvis Duran, Morning Radio Show Star

Elvis Duran, Morning Radio Show Star

The host of the mega-popular Top 40 radio show, "Elvis Duran and the Morning Show," has never shied away from dishing out "real talk" to his millions of listeners, not even when it comes to his dramatic weight loss after "gastric sleeve" surgery. Duran is a longtime meditator and talks about keeping up with the practice while also trying to maintain his edge.

25 Jan 201747min

Jeff Warren & the '10% Happier' Road Trip! (Bonus Episode!)

Jeff Warren & the '10% Happier' Road Trip! (Bonus Episode!)

Canada native Jeff Warren was a "chronic over-thinker" who got into meditation sort of by accident while working as a science journalist and now he's an established meditation teacher. Warren and our host Dan Harris are hitting the road this month on a cross-country bus tour to host meditation sessions with folks from all walks of life from New York City to Los Angeles.

20 Jan 201753min

George Stephanopoulos, ABC News Chief Anchor

George Stephanopoulos, ABC News Chief Anchor

George Stephanopoulos, the co-anchor of "Good Morning America" and the host of ABC News' Sunday morning political affairs show, "This Week," first started practicing meditation in the '90s when he was serving as a senior advisor in the Clinton administration. Stephanopoulos talks about how Transcendental Meditation has helped him deal with anxiety over the years and offers his thoughts on Donald Trump's upcoming inauguration.

18 Jan 201736min

Soren Gordhamer, Being Mindful in Silicon Valley

Soren Gordhamer, Being Mindful in Silicon Valley

Soren Gordhamer is the founder and host of the Wisdom 2.0 conference, which is lauded as one of the largest gatherings of meditators in the world, but it also has been the target of controversy. Raised in Lubbock, Texas, Gordhamer grew up as one of five kids in a Buddhist-friendly household and said he was drawn to meditation in high school as a way to deal with pain and suffering.

11 Jan 201758min

Vince Horn, Buddhist Geek on Struggling with Nirvana

Vince Horn, Buddhist Geek on Struggling with Nirvana

Vince Horn, the co-founder of Buddhist Geeks, says when he reached nirvana, he found it "disappointing" and "anti-climactic," which set him on a new journey to map his experience. A practicing meditation teacher from Asheville, N.C., Horn's latest project is called Meditate.io, a free course on aiming to make in-depth meditation training more approachable.

4 Jan 201756min

Josh Radnor, "How I Met Your Mother" Star Back in Theater

Josh Radnor, "How I Met Your Mother" Star Back in Theater

Josh Radnor, best known for playing Ted Mosby on TV's "How I Met Your Mother," started practicing meditation over a decade ago after he went through a break-up and never really stopped. Radnor's career extends beyond TV -- though he stars in PBS's "Mercy Street" -- to include acclaimed indie film work, Broadway roles, his current role in "The Babylon Line," and he credits meditation for helping him navigate it all.

28 Des 201640min

Andrew Olendzki, Teaching Old-School Buddhism

Andrew Olendzki, Teaching Old-School Buddhism

Andrew Olendzki is a Buddhist scholar of the Pali canon, the original, authentic teachings of the Buddha that have been passed down for centuries. He even speaks Pali, the ancient Indian language the Buddha spoke and taught in. Olendzki started the Integrated Dharma Institute as a way to bring these teachings to the masses.

21 Des 20161h 2min

Handling Holiday Stress (Bonus Episode!)

Handling Holiday Stress (Bonus Episode!)

From the pressures of buying and receiving gifts to surviving awkward office parties, the holidays can be a stressful time of year. On a special edition of the "10% Happier" podcast, our host Dan Harris leads a roundtable discussion with two meditation teachers, Sharon Salzberg and Kate Johnson, as well as David Gelles, an author and New York Times business reporter who covers the meditation scene, on how meditation can help us get through the holidays.

19 Des 201655min

Populært innen Helse

fastlegen
hvordan-har-du-det-mann
leger-om-livet
relasjonspodden-med-dora-thorhallsdottir-kjersti-idem
psykodrama
rss-garne-damer
bak-fasaden-en-reise-i-livet-med-sykepleier-ine
rss-puppen-og-lillemor
morten-ramm-lar-kakla-ga-til-du-sovner
baarli-og-benjamin-gar-i-terapi
foreldreradet
klimaks
hjernesterk
hormonelle-frida
g-punktet
fryktlos
rss-sunn-okonomi
hverdagspsyken
rss-lavterskel
rss-kunsten-a-leve